Real Estate Gifts

The gift of real estate is a unique and meaningful way to support the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

Retained Life Estate

You can enjoy the satisfaction of making such a gift during your lifetime — without affecting your current lifestyle — by a special arrangement called a retained life estate. You can give your residence or second home to the Museum, continue to reside in, use or derive earnings from the property for life, and receive an immediate charitable tax deduction for the remainder value of the property (what the IRS estimates as the Museum's future right in the property).

This type of gift may be appealing to you if you are contemplating leaving your property to the Museum through your will, but would like to transfer the gift now to receive the income tax advantages.

Lifetime Income

Real estate can also be a valuable asset when used to fund a lifetime income agreement such as a charitable remainder trust or charitable lead trust.

As an example, appreciated property such as real estate or securities can be placed in a Trust designating the Museum as the beneficiary. The Trust may sell and reinvest the property, avoiding capital gains taxes, and pay a specified income to you for life. You are able to take an immediate charitable tax deduction upon transferring the assets to the Trust, avoid capital gains and remove the property from your estate, thereby potentially reducing estate taxes. You and your spouse or other designated beneficiary will receive a fixed percentage of at least 5% of the net fair market value of the contributed assets as annual income for life. Upon termination of the Trust, the remaining principal would be distributed to the Museum.

You may benefit by:

Obtaining an income tax charitable deduction equal to the property's full market value (if held long term) instead of the lower cost basis

Reducing the cost of the making the gift and increasing your cash flow that would have been used to pay for taxes, insurance and upkeep.

Avoiding capital gains tax on the property's appreciation as well as a gift tax

Reducing your overall taxable estate.

How to make a gift of real estate to the Desert Museum:

Please contact the Development Office at (520) 883-3055. Prior to acceptance, gifts of real estate are inspected by the Museum or by an agent acting on its behalf to assess the condition of the property and to ensure that it is appropriate to the mission and resources of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

The material presented here is not offered as legal or tax advice. We recommend you seek the advice of your tax advisor, attorney, and/or financial planner to make certain your considered gift fits well with your overall circumstances and planning.